Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty have decided to wait further to make their debut as World No.1 pair in the BWF Tour. The duo were about to make their maiden appearance in the tour as the top-ranked Men’s singles pair at the Denmark Open on Monday. However they opted to pull out of the Super 750 tournament at the last minute.
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There is no official statement regarding their withdrawal yet. However InsideSport managed to speak to a reliable source who stated that both Chirag and Satwik were having some niggles.
“They were not 100% ready after the rigorous Asian Games. There were minor niggles. Their body needed little more rest to recover and train for the next tournament.” stated the source, who did not wish to be named.
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty were about to face Malaysia’s Ong Yew Sin and Teo Ee Yi in the first round on Monday. Their withdrawal meant that the World No.9 Malaysian pair advanced directly to the second round.
Satwik and Chirag last played in the Asian Games. The duo created history by winning India’s first-ever gold medal at the continental event in Badminton. With the win they also reached the World No.1 ranking for the first time in their career.
Sindhu advances, Srikanth exits
Meanwhile, PV Sindhu won her first round match in the tournament on the day. The World No.12 faced faced Scotland’s Kirsty Gilmour. Despite losing a game, she came back to seal a 21-14, 18-21, 21-10 victory.
Aakarshi Kashyap, who made it to the main draw as a replacement to World No.2 Akane Yamaguchi also advanced to the second round. The World No.38 registered a come-from-behind 10-21, 22-20, 21-12 victory.
In the Men’s Singles, Kidambi Srikanth bowed out of the tournament. He lost 21-19, 10-21, 16-21 against China’s Weng Hong Yang in the first round.
Editors pick
